Process of obtaining metals from their ores.



K. KAISER.

PROCESS OF OBTAINING METALS FROMTHBIR ORES.

APPLICATION IILED JUNE 22,1906.

904,263. Patented Nov. 17, 1908.

WI NESSES |r\lvEr\|TnP 6* Z 2 dmwynLSL I, My? A LLYM I V 71. 617W -ZTI'U N E\/S I panying of a furnace especially suitable for carrying liquid constltuents ma .is connected to the bottom of the -c KARL KAISER, OF BERLIN, GERMANY.

PROCESS OF OBTAINING METALS FRO]! THEIR ORES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 17, 1908.

Application filed 11111522, 1906. semi No. 322,971.

To aZlwhom'itma/y concem:

Be it known that I, KARL KAIsnn, rofessor of physiology, a subject of the erman Emperor, resid' at Berlin, 10 Meierottostrasse, Germany, ave invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes of Obtaining Metals from Their Ores; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,

clear, and exact description of the invention,

jecting the ores to heat in an electric fur-i nace, passing an oxidizing gas into contact with said heated ore and then passing a reducing gas into contact with the heated material.

My invention will now be described more particularlin connection with the accomrawings and then particularly pointed out in the claims.

- The drawing is a dia ammatic section out my process.

Referrin to the drawings, A is a furnace chamber 0% pear shape with a perforated bottom. Through openin 'in either side are introduced electrodes and C Raw material is introduced into the furnace through a charging hopper D. At B TS in-.

dicated a tapping spout through which the be run oil. Through the neck eous constituents may escape and can be led to any suitable receiver. A supply 1pipe H amber by means of nozzles G, G whereby oxidizing of the furnace, gas-.

furnace, for example, the furnace shown inthe drawing, a suitable quantity of fluxes, for example, such as limestone and quartz, being added if necessary. The mass is then heated and as soon as the necessary temperature has been attained, z. e., in most cases the melting temperature of the mixture, an oxidizing gas such as atmospheric air is introduced into the heated mass, this oxidizing gas serving to oxidize all combustible impurities in the ore, the gaseous products resulting therefrom being led off from the furnace. When this stage of the process is complete, I then introduce a reducing gas to the heated mass. For this purpose, gaseous carbon com ounds and hydrogen'can be employed. T e most suitable for my process are carbon monoxid, water gas and Dowson gas. The volatile metals escaping in gaseous form, for example, the zinc, are

led out of the furnace and collected in afor the production of pure metals, and more- 1 over, I can control the amo mt of the oxidizing agent as may be required.

By the mere roasting and reducing of materials such as contain zinc and iron with sulfur it is impossible or only possible with great difliculty to separate the different metals completely from each other, for instance the zinc from the iron, the metals being in a fixed combination as in the state of an alloy.

By first treatin the materials with oxidizing agents an then reducing them ac cording to my rocess in an electric furnace this fixed combination of the metals is broken up and the metals can be entirely separated from each other.

Havin thus fully described my invention, what I c aim is:

,1. The process of obtaining metals from materials containing oxidizable substances,

' which consists in heating the raw materials in an electric furnace, then forcing a gaseous oxidizing a cut into contact with said heated materials, en forcing a gaseous'reducin'g agent into contact with the heated materia leading oil and condensing metals escapin in gaseous form, and runmng off the. liqui metals into molds. 2. The process of obtaining metals which consists in heating raw materials containin such metals, in an electric furnace, unti such materials melt, then forcing air into contact with the molten mass, and then forc- 'mg a gaseous reducing agent into contact with the molten in are reduced.

3. The process of obtaining metals which consists in heatingraw materials containin such metals, in an electric furnace, until suc materials, melt, 'then forcing a gaseous oxidizin'g agent intoyc'ontact with the molten mass until the metals theremass until the metals are oxidized, and then forcing carbon monoxid into. the molten mass until the metals are reduced.

4. The process of obtaining separately zinc and iron from pyrite residues and prodnets of smelting works, which consists in heating the raw products in an electric furnace, until the material melts, then forcing atmospheric air through the mass, until the metals are oxidized, then forcing carbon KARL KAISER. Witnesses WDLDEMAR HAUPT, HENRY I'IASPER. 

